Commonwealth Games and championship gold-medallist Akhil Kumar (56kg) crashed out following a stunning loss in the quarterfinals but Jai Bhagwan (60kg) and Amandeep Singh (49kg) assured themselves of at least a bronze on a mixed day for Indian boxers in the Commonwealth Championships in New Delhi on Sunday.
Akhil went down 6-12 to 20-year-old Englishman Iain Weaver, who is competing in his first major senior international tournament since graduating from the youth level last year.
However, Amandeep, a South Asian Games gold medallist, out-punched Tanzania's Rajabu O Mbwana 9-1, while Jai got the better of Scot Josh Taylor 7-1 to cheer up the Indian camp. But the day brought in another disappointment when Manpreet Singh (+91kg) lost to Scot Stephen Simmons.
The most anticipated bout of the day was Akhil's but much to the disappointment of the crowd, the 28-year-old ended up on the losing side.
It was a closely contested affair until the second round by the end of which, the Indian trailed by just a point.
Fighting with his trademark open guard, Akhil raced to a 3-0 lead with a few straight jabs in the first three minutes. It went neck and neck thereafter as Akhil's attempts at landing uppercuts failed to fetch him the points.
{{/usCountry}}Fighting with his trademark open guard, Akhil raced to a 3-0 lead with a few straight jabs in the first three minutes. It went neck and neck thereafter as Akhil's attempts at landing uppercuts failed to fetch him the points.
{{/usCountry}}